Spurious documents normally date no earlier than to the late 2nd century.

3. Percentages

Luke-Acts: 26%. The only Gentile writer of the NT.

Pauline literature: 26%

The other 3 gospels: 31%

The other documents: 17%

The NT and the OT

The NT is about 1/4 of your Bible.

This suggests that the OT is foundational and essential to NT understanding.

4. Apostolicity

Apostolic (Acts 2:42).

Christocentric.

Did not contradict his or his apostles' teaching.

Usually associated the apostles but authorship or personal relationship. The 2nd century traditions to this effect are strong.

5. Authorship

Anonymous documents: 9 (Hebrews, 1-3 John, Acts, and the gospels)

Author specified: 18.

6. Dating

Not chronological.

Letters generally precede the gospels. (Note: the following dates are provisional.)

For reference: Jesus' ministry lasted 27-30 AD, and the earliest strata of the NT documents date to within a couple of years from 30 AD (like 1 Corinthians 15:3-8).

Earliest documents (40s-50s)

James, perhaps as early as 45 AD

Galatians, 48 AD

1-2 Thessalonians, 50 AD

1 Corinthians, 51 AD

2 Corinthians, 53 AD

Romans, 56 AD

Middle documents (60s)

4 prison epistles, 60 AD

1 Timothy, 63 AD

1-2 Peter, 64 AD

Titus, 65 AD

Jude, 66 AD

Mark, 65 AD

2 Timothy, 68 AD

Hebrews, 68 AD

Key date: 70 AD, when the Romans destroyed the Temple and effectively broughtan endto the current form of Judaism.

Later documents

Matthew, 70s

Luke-Acts, 80s. (Some scholars locate Luke-Acts in the 60s.)

John and 1-3 John, 90 AD. (A few scholars also locate John in the 40s or 50s.)

Revelation, 95 AD. (A few scholars place Revelation in the reign of Vespasian, 69-79 AD.)

Relatively early Patristic quotes (e.g. 1 Clement, 96 AD, and Ignatius, 107 AD) suggest that all NT documents were penned in the 1st century. By the way, through quotations of the NT c.100-300 AD, the entire NT can be reconstructed apart from a few verses! We can trust that the scriptures have been copied accurately.